Chicken on restaurant menus

[rgruby]

A friend just got back from his honeymoon in Provence and he mentioned to me that he doesn't recall seeing chicken on a restaurant menu during the entire time he was there. Lots of other poultry (duck, geese, pigeon), but no chicken.

He wanted to know why. I couldn't come up with anything other than they may simply like other poultry better.

So, first off, is chicken a rarity on restaurant menus in the south of France(or in France generally)?

And if so, why, given its near ubiquity in North America.

Cheers,

Geoff

[Kerry Beal]

Chicken in the south of France is one of my favorite things - but bought from little shops where they have a rotisserie just outside the door. It's some of the best chicken you'll ever eat. Don't remember whether I saw much in restaurants though.

[rgruby]

Chicken in the south of France is one of my favorite things - but bought from little shops where they have a rotisserie just outside the door.  It's some of the best chicken you'll ever eat.  Don't remember whether I saw much in restaurants though.

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He did mention that he saw rotisserie chickens - but that's about it.

Cheers,

Geoff

[Margaret Pilgrim]

I think that chicken is considered a homely dish. In restaurants you will very often see its cousin, the pintade. When chicken is on a restaurant menu, it will often be an AOC bird, for instance a Bresse, and be treated with much respect and given a high tariff. This has little in common with the ubiquitous chicken on US menus.

[MichaelCE]

I think that chicken is considered a homely dish.  In restaurants you will very often see its cousin, the pintade.  When chicken is on a restaurant menu, it will often be an AOC bird, for instance a Bresse, and be treated with much respect and given a high tariff.  This has little in common with the ubiquitous chicken on US menus.

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Even if it is a lesser AOC, like Loué, it is treated with respect. Usually it is roasted; the crispy skin is one of the main points. It is a specialty at famous restaurants like Arpège and L'Ami Louis in Paris or La Petite Maison in Nice. It is ubiquitous around Bresse. There are also very upscale specialties with truffles under the skin. You will find less of it in restaurants affecting a Provençale theme where fish and lamb predominate. Pigeon and pintade also seem more local there.

Edited August 23, 2009 by MichaelCE (log)